The United States Mint is honoring our nation's first spouses by issuing one-half ounce $10 gold coins featuring their images in the order they served as first spouse. The United States Mint issues First Spouse Gold Coins on the same schedule as the Presidential $1 Coins honoring the presidents. The 2016 First Spouse Gold Coins honor Patricia Nixon, Betty Ford and Nancy Reagan. The First Spouse Gold Coins program is authorized by the Presidential $1 Coin Act of 2005 (Public Law 109-145).

The First Spouse Gold Coin obverses (heads sides) feature portraits of the first spouses and inscriptions of their names, the order and years of their term as first spouse, the year of minting or issuance, “IN GOD WE TRUST” and “LIBERTY”. Each coin has a unique reverse (tails sides) design featuring an image emblematic of that spouse's life and work, as well as the inscriptions “UNITED STATES of AMERICA”, “E PLURIBUS UNUM”, “$10”, “1/2 OZ.” and “.9999 FINE GOLD.”

When a president served without a first spouse, a gold coin is issued bearing an obverse image emblematic of Liberty as depicted on a circulating coin of that era and a reverse image emblematic of a theme of that president’s life. The coin is inscribed with the years and order of that president’s term. First Spouse Bronze Medals in the 1-5/16" size are also being produced. They bear the same central images as the gold coins and are also inscribed with the name of the first spouse and the order and years of their term as first spouse. The “Liberty” obverse designs are inscribed with the years and order of the president’s term.

The United States Mint also produces and makes available to the public bronze medal duplicates of the First Spouse Gold Coins. Beginning in 2012, the medals were no longer available individually. They are still sold as part of the United States Mint Presidential $1 Coin & First Spouse Medal Sets™ and First Spouse Bronze Medal Series: Four- and Five-Medal Sets. (Some of the medals issued prior to 2012 are still available individually.)